Facts

Johnson claimed that public sector workers had received significant pay increases in the ‘last few years’. Public sector wages, in real terms, have dropped 4.4% since 2010, compared to a rise of 4.3% since 2010 in the private sector. This means that public sector wages have not kept up with inflation since 2010, but rather have diminished in value due to inflation. This is further exacerbated by decades-high recent inflation levels.

The public sector includes doctors, nurses and teachers. Many of these have seen decreases in real-term pay, including -5% for nurses, -9.7% for secondary school teachers, -4% for firefighters and -13% for police officers. These have been counter-balanced by some increases, such as with train drivers and postmen. However, since 2010, real terms pay for the majority of the public sector has decreased.

Verdict

There has been no significant pay increase for the public sector for over a decade, and for many there has been a substantial decrease in real-term wages. Johnson’s claim that there had been significant pay rises is false.

We emailed Boris Johnson's office offering him the chance to respond. The email was received, but no reply.